We've been remiss in our racing coverage, with the women in particular scoring a number of fine results - Sandra Telford with a Corkagh Park win, and Ciara Kinch 4th in the Meath GP. Read on for much, much more!
Open Racing
Orwell are very active on the national scene - see all the results and reports from open races here.
The June bank holiday marks the first long weekend of the summer, and this year marked the first edition of the Deenside Cup in Kilkenny. Ciara Kinch, Aideen Keenan, Rachael Kaye-Mellor and Bryan Geary all came away with prizes, while in the north-west of the country, an Orwell contingent was ripping up Glengesh, with a star turn from newly minted sprinter Fionn Sheridan.
Here's a little piece from the archives, Brian Ahern's Rás diary from 2004, ten years ago. An eventful race for the Orwell legend, he goes into great detail on what is an eight day sufferfest for most. It's revised and updated, as he claims he originally typed it with one finger of one hand (spoilers!).
On the same day that Marcel Kittel sprinted to victory in Belfast, our own Bernard English did the same a little further south. Mark Mulcahy and Eamon Finn also placed at Dunsany, while earlier in the week Claire McEntee chalked up a superb time in Dundalk to take the Leinster 10TT title.
Aideen Keenan proved herself no flash in the pan with a dominant win in Bohermeen at the Waller Cup yesterday, followed up by Rachael Kaye-Mellor in 4th and Orla Hendron in 6th. Keith Harte took 8th in the A4 race, while Diarmuid Collins earned a fine 3rd unplaced A2 at the Shay Elliot in Wicklow yesterday. We’re also covering last weekend’s one day results, with Gavin Dodd 5th in Rás Chonamara and Rachael Kaye-Mellor top Junior in Ros an Laois.
Ahead of tomorrow's Shay Elliot classic, we've put together an account of one of the other tough events of the Irish calendar - the Kerry Group Rás Mumhan. This year the riders were blessed by blazing sunshine for three of the four days, with standout rides from Aidan Collins and Eric Downey, though many of the Orwell contingent's chances were scuppered by crashes. Read on for all the details!
Ed O’Mahony made his Gorey début last weekend, and to hear him tell the tale, it was tough going from before it started, right until the final finish line in Blessington. We’ve lifted his account from the forum for your pleasure! Read on!
Philippe Bourdarias spearheaded a seven man Orwell team at the Gorey 3 Day over the Easter weekend, which saw the fast Frenchman bag a brace of placings and a top 20 overall position.
Aidan Collins brought home the best results of the weekend for the club, with a 4th in the Stamullen GP on Sunday, and an unplaced prize on Friday. Odhrán Connors and Stephen Barry also featured in Stamullen, while the Orwell women were active in Nenagh, with a TTT win, and placings for Ciara Kinch and Monica Marconi.
A few high placings along with a couple of unplaced prizes made Drogheda a happy hunting ground for Orwellians at the weekend. Read on for the details!
Orwell were out in numbers at the weekend, chasing results in Balbriggan. They didn’t come away empty-handed, with Brendan Lawless and Philippe Bourdarias taking unplaced prizes, and Neil Whelan and Seamus Nolan placing in the A4 race on Sunday.
There was plenty of Orwell action across the plains of Meath and the hills of Carlow at the weekend, with Valdis Andersons winning a bunch sprint for 2nd, Tom Blennerhassett in the mix again, and a great showing for the women with Aideen Keenan, Monica Marconi and Claire McEntee all taking home prizes. Read on!
The weekend was a busy one despite the lack of a St Patrick's Day race, and a very successful one - with two top ten finishes and a magnificent 6th overall for Tom Blennerhassett in Rás Maigh Eo, and Philippe Bourdarias taking 4th on the final stage. In Slane, Orla Hendron stayed out of trouble in the women's race to take 4th, and Mark Mulcahy earned 5th in the A4s. Off-road, the club had two top ten finishes in Ticknock with Jamal Ahmed and Eric Downey.
Ahead of today's National League opener, we asked Ned Flanagan winner Aideen Keenan to reflect on her experiences in Clonard last weekend.